BLT Caesar Pasta Salad
A delicious salad mash-up; great as a main dish or barbecue side. Use my recipe below for Quick Yogurt Caesar Dressing.
Servings 4 people
Ingredients
- 1 large head of romaine lettuce washed, dried
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes room temperature
- 2 cups cooked pasta shells cold
- 1/3 cup Caesar salad dressing homemade, recipe below
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/3 cup crispy bacon bits
- freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons fresh basil optional
Instructions
Prep the ingredients
- Prep all BLT ceasar pasta salad ingredients in advance. Wash, dry and shred lettuce. Cut cherry tomatoes in half. Make homemade Caesar dressing. Separately, salad ingredients can hold in the fridge for 24 hours.
Toss the Salad
- In a large bowl, toss the salad and the pasta together with the Caesar dressing. Toss with two large salad tongs until everything is well coated.
- Tumble in the parmesan cheese, bacon and cherry tomatoes. Toss salad gently again. Taste and adjust the seasoning as desired. You may want more dressing.
- Finish the salad with a generous dusting of freshly ground black pepper. Serve the salad at once!
- Optional: sprinkle the salad with fresh, finely chopped basil. It's the perfect pairing to the BLT flavours.
Notes
I like to mix up the greens in this salad. Try half Romaine and half frisee or endive for a fun variation.
Pasta is best when cooked one day in advance and chilled overnight in the refrigerator.
Add croutons if you like! I find the pasta shells replace the bread and I don't miss them in this salad.